TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan — The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has officially turned over a Mobile Command and Control Vehicle (MoCCoV) to Tuguegarao City during the HANDA sa Bagong Pilipinas program held at the Cagayan Coliseum Thursday.

The ceremonial turnover, led by DOST Secretary Renato Solidum Jr., Tuguegarao City Mayor Maila Ting-Que and Cagayan Gov. Edgar Aglipay, featured the symbolic handover of a miniature MoCCoV.

Ting-Que expressed her gratitude to the DOST, describing the vehicle as a crucial disaster response asset that could help save lives, particularly in Tuguegarao, which serves as a catch basin for floodwaters of the valley.

“So this [project] is years in the making. It is using advanced technology tools to help us decide better on disaster risk management,” stated Ting-Que.

“We in Tuguegarao City promise and commit to you that the things you have given us, specifically this MoCCoV, will be very well taken care of,” the mayor guaranteed.

Solidum, on the other hand, urged Cagayeños to maximize the use of the technology and ensure that disaster response personnel become familiar with the vehicle before an actual emergency occurs.

“The real measure of technology is its use during the moment when it matters. So please use the MoCCoV in whatever situation you can so that when the real disaster scenario happens, you have mastery in the use of the vehicle and it will not be a mystery,” the science chief implored.

“If it’s a mystery, you don’t know how to use it. The hazard can become a misery. Mastery is important to avoid the mystery problem of using the technology and, more importantly, to avoid the misery that can be brought by these hazards,” he further explained.